


October 31, 1980

by Klarge16



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, marauders - Fandom
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-06
Updated: 2017-06-06
Packaged: 2018-11-10 00:10:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11115789
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Klarge16/pseuds/Klarge16
Summary: The night Voldemort visits Godric's Hollow from Sirius Black's point of view.





	October 31, 1980

On most nights the suburban street was empty after dark, the houses lining the streets would stand with lit windows and porch lights on. But tonight was Halloween, and young boys and girls in various costumes were running anxiously from door to door, their tiaras slipping and their capes billowing in their excitement. Parents milled around on the sidewalks, chatting amongst themselves and the lampposts were shining brightly, creating a well lit street full of moving shadows.   
A few looked up from the conversations when a sharp popping sound burst through the night air. The sound was soon forgotten as parental eyes were drawn to a young man marching down the street. His dark hair was a mid length, and was falling artfully into his eyes. He was quite handsome, but much younger than most of the parents escorting their youngsters out trick or treating. He stopped abruptly to wait for a small group of children to cross in front of him, bags and pumpkin buckets swinging in their hands. One of the fathers following along in the children’s wake eyed the stranger up and down. The father slowly took in his long black robes, the bit of wood in his right hand, and the black converse sneakers on his feet. “Aren’t you a little old to be dressing up?” His tone was judgmental, and a bit harsh for the fun atmosphere felt on the rest of the street.   
But the young stranger simply grinned, “aren’t you a bit complacent for the times?” His eyebrows arched mockingly. He didn’t wait for the father’s reply, however, and commenced marching up the street before turning down a much darker alley and coming to a stop outside a duplex house. The young man stared at the duplex intently, and blinked once, before a third door appeared in the center of the dwelling.   
Sirius Black pounded on the door, and then he waited impatiently. He was bouncing on the balls of his feet, as he checked a pocket watch he pulled from inside his robes. The inscription on the back was impossible to see on the poorly lit street. He knocked again, more gently this time, but no one appeared at the door. Sirius raised his fist again, and knocked so hard the door nearly buckled under his fist. “Wormtail, open the door,” he shouted as he checked the pocket watch again. Sirius’ eyes were darting from the watch to the door. He stepped away from the door, his eyes scanning the sky, before approaching again and yelling “Peter! It’s Padfoot, I bought the fawn a toy broom for his birthday, now open the door.”   
Sirius waited another minute before turning the knob, the door was locked of course. Even Wormtail wouldn’t leave it unlocked in these times. “Alohomora.” He pointed the bit of wood, a wand really, at the door, but it remained locked. Sirius was frowning now, it wasn’t like Wormtail to charm his door like this. Sirius raised one sneaker clad foot, and two kicks later had forced the door open. It wasn’t pretty, but effective.   
“Wormtail?” The house was dark, but Sirius had been here enough to know he was standing in the entryway, and the living room was to his right. He muttered to himself “lumos,” and the end of his wand lit up, casting everything in an eerie light. Everything was as if Wormtail had been here himself. An armchair and a sofa sat in the living room, a knitted throw laying across the back of the sofa. The house had a bit of a musty smell, as if no one had been there in a while. Sirius ran his finger along an end table, and then brushed the dust off again on his robes.   
He continued into the kitchen, leaving the lights off, something wasn’t right. He opened the fridge. It was empty. He pulled a mirror out of the pocket of his robes, and speaking clearly, said “Prongs.” The mirror remained blank. Sirius frowned. “James Potter,” he spoke his best friend’s, his brother’s really, fully name. Still nothing. The mirror was shaking in his hand now. Sirius spoke again, a catch in his voice. “Lily Potter.” The mirror simply reflected his own image back to him. 

Sirius spun on the spot.

He reappeared back at his own flat. Dumbledore had charmed the Potter’s entire village, he couldn’t apparate anywhere near Godric’s Hollow. He rapped his own head with his wand, straddled his motorbike, pressed the invisibility button, gunned the engine, and rose briskly into the sky. He knew the flight to Godric’s Hollow by heart, and he pushed the motorcycle faster than he ever had, racing through the sky. He was having trouble keeping the bike straight.   
After what seemed like hours he began to descend toward the Potter’s cottage. He landed so fast that the bike tipped over and skidded twenty feet with Sirius underneath of it, ripping his robes. But Sirius didn’t even notice, the roof of the Potter’s house had collapsed. Collapsed right where the nursery was.   
“No, no,” Sirius was mumbling to himself as he pushed the bike off of his legs and sprinted for the open door. He tripped and went sprawling halfway there, skinning his palms on the cement walkway, but barely slowing down as he stumbled towards the door again. The door was standing open, the lights in the house still on. A shadowed figure lay just beyond the doorframe, Sirius was halfway through the front garden before he could see that it was a body. 

A body he would know anywhere. 

“Prongs!” Sirius was gasping, he couldn’t breath. “Prongs!” He threw himself through the door, his hands grabbing James’ shoulders and shaking him. “Prongs . . . James, please.” But James couldn’t respond. There was a great gasping sound coming from somewhere in the house, Sirius was pounding on James’ chest now. “ . . .” he couldn’t speak, he tried to shout again. His voice wasn’t working, how would James hear him if his voice wasn’t working? What was that bloody sound?!   
The baby! Could Harry be, but the sound wasn’t coming from upstairs. It was coming from Sirius himself. Sirius closed his eyes. He had to get ahold of himself.   
“James,” Sirius was whispering now. His friend, his brother, still didn’t respond. Sirius didn’t know what to do, how could he? He would never see his best friend again. His friend who had defended him, plotted with him, pranked with him, lived with him. Sirius’ cheeks were wet. Sirius wiped the back of his hand across them before taking a shaky breath and calling out once more, “Red?” He waited a moment before yelling again, “Lils? Lily!”   
Sirius picked himself up off the floor, his eye scanning, looking for Lily, or rather Lily’s body. But she wasn’t on the first floor. The stairs were still standing. Sirius didn’t want to climb them, didn’t want to see what he was sure he would find in the nursery.   
Sirius climbed the stairs as if in a dream. The door to the nursery was standing open, debris scattered around the floor, dust and dirt covering the floor. And there, in front of the crib, was Lily. She was sprawled unnaturally on the floor, as though she had been shoved. Her expression was still desperate, as if she had been pleading. Sirius brushed the dust off her face, and kissed her brow before he stood once again. Sirius thought he was prepared for what he would find in the crib. James and Lily’s baby, their beautiful baby boy, his wonderful, delightful Godson. 

And he did. Lying there, in the crib, was a baby boy, just over a year old, sleeping fitfully. 

Tears still streaked Harry’s face through the dust that had settled on it, as if he had cried himself to sleep. Blood was seeping out of a lightning shaped cut on his forehead, but he appeared otherwise unharmed. “Harry,” Sirius’s voice was hoarse. “Harry,” he reached into the crib and picked up the baby. The movement woke him and he started to cry again. “Shhhhh, shhhh, don’t cry Harry, it’s me, it’s Uncle Padfoot.” He was rocking Harry in his arms, blocking Lily’s body from Harry with his own.   
A heavy creaky sound brought Sirius’s eyes to the doorframe. He moved the baby to his hip and held his wand up at the same time. 

“‘Arry?” A rough voice sounded through the small cottage’s second floor. Sirius relaxed, it was Hagrid.   
“In here, Hagrid,” he called and lowered his wand at the same time. Hagrid appeared in the doorway, his huge body filling the entire doorway even though he was crouched so low as to be practically standing on his knees.   
“Sirius? Whatchoo’ doin’ here?” Hagrid’s beetle black eyes showed his confusion.  
“I was checking on James tonight, what about you?” Sirius shifted the baby on his hip, making sure he still couldn’t see Lily’s body lying on the floor.   
“Dumbledore sent me for Harry. I’m ter meet him at Lily’s sister’s house.”   
Sirius gasped, “Oh Hagrid, He can’t be serious.” Sirius squeezed his way past Hagrid, who paused to eye Lily’s body on the floor before he followed Sirius back down the stairs and into the back garden. Sirius started to take the long way around the house, his wand still out.   
“Stop, Sirius. Dumbledore was very clear, Harry’s to go ter his Aunt and Uncle’s house in Surry. Come on now.”   
Sirius was practically jogging to stay in front of Hagrid, but he shook his head all the same. “James and Lily were very clear, if something happened to them I’m supposed to take care of Harry. Andromeda’ll help me if I need it, thanks.” Sirius hadn’t even paused, he was nearly to his tipped over motorbike by now. The baby would have to ride in the sidecar, he kept turning his head back to the destroyed cottage, and then to Sirius again. Suddenly, as if he realized that James and Lily weren’t coming with them, he burst into noisy tears again.   
“Shhhh, come on Harry, shhhh.” Sirius was rocking the baby again. He had spent loads of time with James and Lily and Harry of course, but he had never been completely in charge of Harry before. James and Lily had always been nearby, always listening for a single disturbance from their small son. And now . . . now they would never see their son again. They would never see him make his first friend, never take him to the Hogwarts express, never share about his good marks with him and Moony and Wormtail. What would the world be like with three Marauders instead of four?

Wormtail! 

Sirius’s eyes widened as he rocked the baby. Wormtail had been the only person to know the secret. Dumbledore had just performed the charm last week. Even Sirius hadn’t known. And Moony was still undercover. 

Sirius nearly dropped Harry. 

Harry! What would he do with Harry? He couldn’t bring Harry with him, he wasn’t even eighteen months old. Sirius rotated on the spot, nearly running into Hagrid who was still talking behind him. “Why does Dumbledore want Harry to go live with his Aunt and Uncle? Lily never spoke to her sister, and James hated her.” Sirius was very matter of fact as he looked up at Hagrid who had stopped talking abruptly.   
Hagrid shrugged. “Said it was old magic.”   
Sirius thought for a moment. Dumbledore knew the old magic better than anyone. And Sirius could come back for Harry afterwards. James and Lily probably had a will in their house somewhere, or in the Gringotts vault sharing their wishes about Harry explicitly. He nodded suddenly. “Alright, Hagrid. You can take Harry to his Aunt and Uncle. Take my motorbike, it’ll be faster.” He handed Harry, who had stopped crying, but looked as though he might start again, to Hagrid. Sirius heaved the motorbike up and wheeled it over to Hagrid, holding it as Hagrid climbed on, took hold of the handlebar with one hand and gripped Harry tightly with the other.   
Sirius leaned forward, kissing Harry on the forehead before he nodded, unable to speak   
again, at Hagrid. He watched as the motorbike roared and soared into the sky, it dipped, unused to Hagrid’s weight, but recovered and soared off into the night sky. Sirius watched until it was out of sight, then turned, and strode quickly to the woods at the edge of the village, where he turned on the spot. 

Godric’s Hollow was quiet once again.

**Author's Note:**

> Please let me know if anyone would like this story continued


End file.
